Carlos Corporan: A special week

Astros catcher became a father, got recalled to Majors

Last season I experienced a very special week; one that was filled with a lot of emotions, but for two very different reasons.

Off the field, the day before my son was born, my wife and I went to the doctor for a final checkup. The doctor informed us that there was an issue with his heart. It wasn't until then that we found out that the right chamber of his heart was larger than the left chamber. They had to do an emergency C-section so they could get him out and deal with his condition.

Both my wife and I are from Puerto Rico, and we were living in Oklahoma while I was playing in Triple-A. We were far away from our families, which just added stress to the situation. Luckily for us, her mom was living in Alaska, so she immediately flew down to be with us. My wife and I were so blessed to have the doctors we did in Oklahoma. They were great. I credit them with saving my son's life.

Everything is great now. My son is healthy and doing everything a baby should do. He definitely cries a lot, but just hearing that cry makes me realize how lucky I am.

Later that week I also got recalled to the big leagues for the first time in a couple of years. On one day my son was born, and a couple of days later I was called up from Triple-A to the Majors. I don't know what else you can ask for. It was a big moment in my life. It was a great feeling to have two very special moments take place in the same week.

The callup with Houston was very special. When I was brought up by Milwaukee last time, I knew it was for emergency purposes only. I was basically there as a stopgap measure. I knew that Jason Kendall was going to be behind the plate almost every day. Our catcher was getting beat up and needed some rest. I knew that I would get a chance to stay up here this time and, hopefully, prove that I belonged.

I was definitely better prepared as a catcher for this callup than I was last time. My time spent in Milwaukee got me ready. I learned how to prepare myself for each game, how to handle the pitching staff and how to deal with the day-to-day stuff.

Usually during the offseason we go home to Puerto Rico, but this year we are staying in Oklahoma City so we can continue seeing the doctors to make sure that our son stays healthy.

Back-up catcher Carlos Corporan played in 52 games for the Astros last year. He posted a .985 fielding percentage over 411 1/3 innings behind the plate.

This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.